The Mistakes We Make
by Kixxy
Summary: { Added Chapter Two } As Julie-Su and Knuckles' relationship begins to strain, the Dark Legion strikes and chaos ensures. Just what are they planning?
1. Chapter One

The Mistakes We Make  
Chapter One  
  
A Knuckles the Echnida fanfiction by Amy "Kixxy" Lawson  
sailor_vanilla@hotmail.com  
  
Standard warning - throughout this chapter and story as a whole  
there is occasional language use, and possibly more adult themes  
as the chapters progress.  
  
========  
  
'One, two, three.'  
  
With those silent counts, three glowing beams came flying out of  
the murky darkness. A hollow, metallic sound, and then silence  
once more.  
  
'One, two, three.' Once again came the beams, different in colour,  
similar in size. Again the sound erupted through the field, but  
then came the quiet.  
  
"Razeid."  
  
"Sir!" The tall echnida spun around on his heels, staring into  
his commander's eyes. Eye. Kragok frowned, tossing his smoke   
onto the ground and stamping it out with his heel.  
  
"What are you doing?" he pressed, motioning towards the broken  
barrels strewn across the ground with his robotic claw. Razeid  
cast a glance at the various targets before turning back to his  
leader.  
  
"Testing the weaponry," he explained, lifting his laser gun for  
valification. "I think I've hit the design the cop was waving  
around the other night. Only... better." A smile crossed over his  
face, while Kragok's remained in his trademark scowl. The cloaked  
echnida nodded.  
  
"Keep at it." A brief silence, and then he turned off to wherever  
he came. But not fully, though. Kragok's position in the Dark  
Legion did not come from blind trust; he never turned his back  
completely on anyone. Not his own sister. Anyone BUT his own  
sister, at times.  
  
"Affirmative, sir!" Razeid returned his attention to more pressing  
matters, his laser. Painstakingly created, it had driven him to  
obsession for the past two weeks. Only the latest in the Legion's  
war against the rest of the echnida species, if the Echnida  
Security Team was gaining weapon superiority, besting them was the  
only way they could maintain control. It was one of their main  
assets, and Razeid prided himself on his talent in that  
department.  
  
Standing at average echnida height and build, he did not  
immediately look threatening; physically he was not the most  
daunting in their group, an average fighter at best. Relatively  
new to the raids, he went along almost as a spy to investigate  
who was doing what. Nonetheless, Kragok seemed to recognize his  
talent and loyalty, and his privileges were increasing as the  
days went on. His body was 'clean' for Legion standards, with no  
major robotic attachments needed to function; besides the routine  
addition here or there or the nesscessary devices all members of  
their clan were given upon entry, he could easily pass as an  
average Echnidapolis citizen.  
  
Which was exactly the reason Kragok held such interest in him.  
  
Spying was a crucial job for the Legion, as EST was starting to  
gain the upper hand in their war. Aligning themselves with the  
Dingoes was both a strength and a weakness, but either way, it  
gave Kragok an added pain to worry about. Things had not been  
going very strongly for them, and to make matters worse, several  
members had succeeded - with the ability to give secrets to the  
enemy. One in particular, Julie-Su, was known to be with Knuckles.  
Knuckles the Guardian. Knuckles the enemy. Kragok and Kommissar  
seemed to have added resentment towards her, but Razeid was not  
sure the true reason. The lives of the commanders was kept highly  
under-wraps, and was not meant to be questioned about. Such was  
an understood rule for anyone in their group.  
  
In any event, secrets were more closely guarded, and only the  
true experts could retrieve them. Razeid was ready and willing to  
accept the dangerous position when the time is right. His body  
would allow him to pass for 'normal'. He had the intelligence to  
know what to say and when. All he needed was to wait.  
  
'One, two... three.'  
  
*  
  
Knuckles the Echnida sat back in his booth, smirking as he and  
Mighty watched Vector tear into his four burgers as fast as Sonic  
could run. The armadillo laughed and glanced at his watch.  
  
"Almost up, Vec!" Tapping at his timepiece, he could barely finish  
the words before an empty soda cup went flying past his head.  
  
"Got it, man!" The crocodile held his arms up in victory before  
stealing one of Knuckles' fries. "I've got your time -beat-."  
  
"I don't THINK so! You so cheated on the timing when I went last  
time." Mighty waved his finger at the reptile, who groaned and  
rolled his eyes.  
  
"Forget it, dude. You SO lost. Admit it!"  
  
"Oh you wish-" At that point, Knuckles had completely tuned out of  
the conversation. He knew from past experience he was in for at  
least fifteen minutes of their bickering, at which point a cute  
waitress or some other distraction would walk by. Looking at his  
companions, he was hoping that distraction would be Julie-Su. But  
she was at the doctor today, and Espio was off wherever he went,  
so he was stuck with these two, and becoming very bored by the  
minute...  
  
"...so I heard from Charms the other day." Knuckles caught the  
last bit of Vector's sentence, once again coming back to their  
conversation.  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yeah. The wedding to that one chick is still on and all. In fact,  
they're starting to talk about... children." At the last world,  
Vector shuddered.  
  
"Our Charmy, a DAD?" Mighty laughed. "Wow. How things have  
changed, eh?"  
  
"Who would have thought..." Knuckles shook his head. "That's just  
a bit above Vector being a parent."  
  
"Vector, a parent?" Mighty snickered, looking across at the croc.  
"That's about as likely as Vector getting LAID - neither of which  
is going to happen anytime soon!" Both burst out laughing, and  
Vector just sat back.  
  
"You think so, Mighty-Man? Well, you're thinking WRONG!"  
  
"Admit it, Vec..." Once again, Knuckles stared off into space.  
Out of the window. Bored, bored... suddenly, he leaned past the  
booth, as a familiar face walked by. Julie-Su! Absently waving  
to Mighty and Vector, he quickly left the cafe, chasing after his  
fleeting girlfriend.  
  
"Julie!" He called, waving his arm. The roar of the hovercars  
drowned him out, and she continued onwards without turning around.  
"Eh... JULIE-SU!"  
  
"Knuckles!" she spun around, surprised. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Ahh... just amusing myself watching Vector and Mighty look like  
idiots." He shrugged, flashing a smile.  
  
"Yeah, what else is new." Smirking, she playfully hit him on the  
arm. Thinking for a moment, "I'd better get home, um... Mom needs  
me."  
  
"See you later, then." Knuckles quickly pecked her on the cheek,  
and watched her head back to her original direction. "Call you?"  
  
"Bye!" Turning away, she hurried past the crowds, anxious to get  
home. Jumping up the steps, she flashed a wave to the watchman  
and moved into her apartment.  
  
The warm smell of steak greeted Julie-Su as she opened the door.  
Smiling, she embraced her foster mother, Floren-Ca.  
  
"Hello, dear! You went to the doctor?" The elderly woman smiled,  
pushing a stray lock from her daughter's face. The pink echnida  
nodded, staring at the table with a hungry look in her eyes. "Eat  
up! I made it just for you."  
  
"You didn't have to do that for me!" she squeaked. Laughing,  
Floren waved her arm and set down a bowl of creamed corn next to  
Julie's plate. She allowed the food to enter her stomach rapidly,  
having not eaten all day. Floren joined her at the table, eating  
a tad more timidly.  
  
"Where's Simon?" Julie-Su asked between bites.  
  
"Oh, he's asleep in the room. He's been... very tired, lately."  
A weak look crossed over Floren-Ca's face. Julie looked over at  
her sadly. "The years are catching up to him."  
  
"He still has tons to go." Julie smiled in an attempt to be  
strong. She wasn't ready to loose him. Not yet. She had just been  
reunited with them... she hadn't had the chance to get to know  
her 'parents' yet. While other echnidas her age had an entire life  
with their elders, her memories had been erased, and she had been  
living by herself for some time now. The Dark Legion had been the  
only family she could ever remember. When her mother died, her  
father had surrendered responsibility to Floren-Ca, but Kragok  
and Kommissar had all knowledge of their time together wiped out.  
That she didn't remember, either - Simon had told her earlier.  
Simon, the only father she knew. And here she was, about to loose  
him all over again.  
  
It was her complete lack of memory that upset her the most. She  
was going insane trying to remember something, anything... but it  
was all gone. It was better that way, they tried to tell her. Her  
past was not the prettiest thing in the world. But still, it was  
HER past. And she wanted more than anything to be able to remember  
it. But nothing she had done worked. And she was beginning to feel  
that nothing ever would.  
  
A private person, it was something she rarely if ever would  
discuss; least of all to Knuckles. Knuckles. Something had been  
bothering her about him lately, but she wasn't sure what. He  
seemed different, distant... either that, or she had grown to want  
something he wasn't able to give. But whatever it was, she had  
been feeling differently towards him.  
  
When Julie-Su crawled into her bed later on that night, she cried  
into her pillows just like previous nights. Never would she show  
such an emotion to anyone else. That went against everything she  
had ever been taught, anything she could ever remember. Never let  
the enemy see your weakness.  
  
The enemy was everyone else.  
  
*  
  
Knuckles sat staring into the night sky. The view of anywhere on  
the Floating Island was above average, but in the beautiful  
mushroom zone, it was far above par. Leaning back against the base  
of a gigantic fungi, he allowed his mind to wander.  
  
"Something on your mind?" Knuckles jumped as Archemedies'  
miniature form suddenly appeared on his shoulder.  
  
"You, now!" The boy held out his palm for the fire ant to jump  
onto. Adjusting his hat, the small creature stared up at his  
pupil.  
  
"Not out with the boys - or la femme echnida - tonight?"  
  
"Can't a Guardian get some time to himself anymore?" Knuckles  
jokingly made a flicking motion, while Archemedies jumped down to  
sit on the grass nearby.  
  
"Of course! I've been pushing for more of it for ages! Although I  
might go as far as to say you're listening to me for once, that'd  
be too much of a stretch. Come, now. Why the long face?"  
  
"I'm fine!" The echnida barked, generating laugher from his  
friend.  
  
"I'm sure you are. So where are your friends at this hour anyway?"  
  
"The guys are out... who-knows-where." Knuckles shrugged. "Doing  
their thing. I'm doing mine - or at least I WAS until someone in  
particular decided to barge in and quiz me. You know," he pointed  
his finger, "you could pop by in a very bad time sometime. Very  
inconvenient."  
  
"I look before I leap." Archemeies scoffed. "In any event, that  
takes care of the three stooges, but where's Lady Luck?"  
  
Knuckles paused before answering. "Out somewhere or sleeping, I  
guess."  
  
"You guess?"  
  
"What, do you think I keep track of the Chatoix every second of  
the day?" he snapped. "Get it through your little head! They're  
doing whatever they're doing, and I don't care!"  
  
"Ah. Rough spot. I'll be seeing you then!" In a flash of fire and  
smoke, the ant was gone, leaving Knuckles to his lonesome.  
Sighing, he returned his attention to the stars.  
  
"Where's your answers, anyway? Damn stars..." As to be expected,  
no reply was received. Shaking his head in frustration, Knuckles  
closed his eyes and slowly reverted to a sleeping state.  
  
*  
  
"Razeid! It's late. Come to bed."  
  
"Yeh." Brushing hair back from his face, the navy echnida stood  
up. His legs ached like hell, and his stomach growled from  
neglect. Cracking his legs, he stretched out his arms, trying to  
get used to his new position.  
  
"Damn. How long have you been out here?" Teku-Na squinted over at  
him. "You're overworking yourself again."  
  
"You worry too much."  
  
"Well, somebody should, and obviously YOU don't." She shook her  
head, sighing. Razeid grinned and moved past her on the way to  
his "room", a slab of concrete just the same as most of the  
others. Nonetheless, they made do. Teku-Na followed him out,  
sleeping in the same block as he.  
  
The two had an interesting relationship, one decidedly  
non-romantic but close just the same. Teku-Na was a violet  
echnida, black haired with pink highlights floating through it.  
They were close in age; she was sixteen, he eighteen. Around the  
age of thirteen Teku was on a raid when she was struck by an  
explosion. The Legion's emergency medical squad carted her back  
to base camp, but the damage was done... she relied heavily on  
robotics to survive, and much of her left side was filled with  
metallic attachments here and there. Even with all her additions  
she had trouble now and then, and there was the possibility of  
more operations being needed.  
  
Razeid, then around fifteen, had been assisting at the medical  
department the night she first came in. Scared and afraid, she  
instinctively sought out the closest in age, and he attempted to  
soothe her nervousness. It worked, and the two became fast  
friends. Neither had much else; her parents were killed on the  
same raid, his weren't a part of the Dark Legion and therefore  
his enemies. That was just how it worked.  
  
"I overheard lady Kommissar speaking with the commander earlier,"  
Teku commented on their way to the cell.  
  
"About?"  
  
"Well... I believe it has something to do with that weapon you've  
been toying at for much too long." Razeid couldn't hide the grin  
that was spreading across his face like a rash.  
  
"And what did he say?"  
  
"He'll need it soon, I think. I only caught a bit of it. Had to  
go in for my weekly power boost. They were working on a nearby  
station. What the hell does this thing do, anyway?"  
  
"It kicks ass - is what it does," came his reply, as Razeid  
crawled onto his 'bed'... a concrete slab, sticking out of the  
wall with no comfort included. "And I'm going to be the one using  
it."  
  
"I'm sure you are. G'night now."  
  
*  
  
Next Day ...  
  
"That should do it now." Brushing off his sleeve, Remington stood  
back, admiring his work. The fireplace now ablaze, he turned back  
to smile at his lady, Komi-Ko. Returning the gesture, she took a  
sip of her drink and held up a nearby glass.  
  
"More wine, darling?"  
  
"I could force myself, I think." Accepting her offer, Remington  
drank a small bit of the liquid before returning his attention to  
her. "It's a beautiful night out," he commented, wrapping his arms  
around her waist. Her face moved closer to his, speaking in her  
whispery tone.  
  
"It's quite warm in here." Their lips touched, softly and slowly  
more deeply. As Komi-Ko set down her wine glass on a nearby table,  
Remington's beeper suddenly went off.   
  
"Damn it..." Cursing to himself, Remington took a glance at the  
number. Headquarters. Maybe it was just Terri-Lu with some filing  
error. He hoped so, and ignored it. "They'll call back."  
  
"You're sure?" Komi glanced at it, then back at him.  
  
"Positive..." Their lips met again, tongues dancing. He wasn't in  
the mood for interruptions. Not tonight. But of course, the  
beeping started up again, and continued loudly. Sighing, Komi-Ko  
pulled back, shaking her head.  
  
"They need you, sweetheart." Remington shook his head and walked  
over to the kitchen, leaning up against a cupboard.  
  
"What do you want?" Remington barked into his receiver, pulling it  
up.  
  
"Constable, you'd better get down here. NOW."  
  
  
Remington pulled into the station in his car minutes afterwards.  
Jumping out, he briskly walked into the EST building's back  
entrance, glancing around curiously. Unaware of what the call had  
been about, two officials greeted him at the door.  
  
"Constable." The female nodded her head at him. A higher officer  
in the Echnida Security Team, she held in her hands an envelope  
and a small remote.  
  
"Kara-Ja. Mind telling me what the hell is going on?"  
  
"I'll explain to you in the car. Move it!"  
  
*  
  
Darkness. That was all that was around. Utter darkness. First she  
saw the darkness, then she heard the silence. Groaning, Julie-Su  
opened her eyes slowly, painfully. A glance to the right and left  
didn't offer any explaination to her whereabouts. "What... where?"  
  
Two sets of eyes peered at her through the cage. One nodded, and  
they both left. 


	2. Chapter Two

The Mistakes We Make  
Chapter Two  
  
A Knuckles the Echnida fanfiction by Amy "Kixxy" Lawson  
sailor_vanilla@hotmail.com  
  
========  
  
Constable Remington gazed around the site in disgust. The three  
apartments had been ransacked; legion work, easily. Several people  
were missing, presumably kidnapped.  
  
He knew one of them closely. Julie-Su. A member of the chatoix,  
the guardian's girlfriend. Perhaps he could assist in their  
search. She had been in and out of the legion before, and  
Remington had never been all too sure exactly where her  
loyalties lay. Originally a member, she had left after meeting  
Knuckles, but had returned at least once since then. Perhaps  
another turn-around? Her 'father', Simon, was missing as well.  
Floren-Ca was not.  
  
"I had left the building..." she wept, speaking with officer  
Kara-Ja. "When I returned... this..."  
  
The buildings, Remington knew, were quite nice, a more private  
local for those who didn't feel like living where all the traffic  
went through every day. There were in a more private neighborhood  
than much of the buildings around, so many echnidas favoured the  
district.  
  
However, a growing number of those residents, for that reason,  
were ex-legionnares. Unpopular with the main society, living in  
the more private sector allowed them to hide out when necessary.  
And apparently, Kragok knew about the area as well. Many, but not  
all, of the missing citizens were or looked like escapees. The  
metallic attachments most possessed were dead giveaways.  
  
"Do you have any idea where the legionnares are now, ma'am?"  
Kara-Ja questioned the purple echnida shaking in front of her.  
  
"No... no I don't... I don't..." Floren-Ca covered her face. "I  
wish I did. I wish so much I could help you. But I don't know  
where they are now. They... they move around so much..."  
  
Remington bit his lip, turning aside. Men were already searching  
for the camp, but what he needed to know first was the motive.  
Kragok wasn't stupid. He had known about the fleeters for some   
time now, and it didn't take a genius to find them. Why now?  
  
*  
  
"Why now?"  
  
Kragok stared at his half-sister through her bars of containment.  
Her defiance was intriguing, if not irritating. "Honestly. You're  
losing it. You've just found me now? Come ON!"  
  
"Oh, I've known where you were for weeks, Julie-Su." The cool  
reply didn't seem to phase her, despite its intentions. The pink  
female seemed, at a first glance, unbreakable. 'It runs in the  
family.'  
  
"Well then, why did it take so long to get me? Should have known  
you'd send a man to do a woman's job." Julie tossed out the bait  
without fear, but curiously. He was keeping her in the cell for  
some reason, but that had been it so far. She wasn't dead yet, nor  
had her memory been wiped out somehow. What was left?  
  
"Always the sexist one, weren't you?" Kragok sipped at a glass of  
water a legionnare had fetched for him earlier, glancing at his  
prisoner to see if she would ask for some. She didn't. Smiling to  
himself, he set it back down. "You know, Julie... your position is  
still open."  
  
"And I've been gone for how long?" So that was it. That's what he  
wanted. Her to return. And yet she knew that somehow that would be  
an easy setup, and going along with the plan might not even be a  
safe route.  
  
"Everyone takes vacations now and then, don't they?"  
  
"Even you? Vacations? And here I thought you were completely  
dedicated to your job." A smirk escaped her face. It was an  
interesting game, and one they had played before.  
  
"Ah, young fry. You know me too well. But that's why I'm the  
commander, and you are but a grunt."  
  
"Last I checked, I wasn't anything here," she spat, "and I hardly  
think that anything you say could possibly change that."  
  
"Anything?" Kragok leaned back in his seat, a cocky smile crossing  
over his shadowed face. "I should hardly doubt that."  
  
*  
  
Lady Kommissar leaned back in her chair, surveying the wall of  
monitors displayed before her. It was, of course, the most  
efficient way to keep track on who was planning to overthrow her.  
Of course, her loyal guards - slaves - were there to take care of  
such annoyances.  
  
Razeid stood by the door, staring into the dimly-lit room. The  
monitors provided a blue light, giving the room a cool atmosphere  
only accented by the icy mistress usually found in it. Whereas  
Kragok intimidated others in a more forceful manner, his sister  
relied on her body to do the job just as much as her tongue. Less  
direct for more effect. It worked, too.  
  
He remained there in silence, unsure if he should say or do  
anything. It was a general rule that the commanders were to be  
interrupted in no circumstances. She was a fascinating sight. In  
her delicate frame lay the appearance of power. She carried  
herself in such a way that leadership and control was somehow  
apparent, not to mention respected. She carried as much clout as  
her male counterpart but was able to slip behind the scenes should  
something backfire, whereas he would have to stand in the dust and  
bare any consequences. He stared at her with fascination, unable  
to divert his eyes away from the figure in the chair. Her leather  
ensemble only heightened her effect.  
  
"Ah, Razeid. Do enter." Lien-Da commanded, not bothering to turn  
around. The echnida silently complied, standing before her desk as  
she continued to observe the monitors. This went on for a full minute  
before she gave one a slight push and spun around to face him. "You  
do know that, my back turned as such, I would have been an easy  
target for you."  
  
Her gloved hands reached for the desk and she lifted herself up  
gracefully, perfectly, now kneeling on the hard surface. "Could have  
waved a gun in my face. Kidnapped me. Made me do your bidding."  
  
Razeid tensed, unsure of how to answer her. Such was her routine,  
and one she was a master of. "I could have," he finally responded,  
keeping his eyes locked on her body.  
  
"And yet, you didn't. Why is that, lowly one? Why didn't you?"  
  
"Because you are my commander," Razeid bowed his head and lifted  
it back up, "and it's my job to stop the bastards who try that." A  
knowing smile crossed over her face as she nodded.  
  
"You never disappoint me... or perhaps anyone." Her legs crossed over  
the table, she lightly kicked him back with her leather-booted feet.  
"Now perhaps you'd like to prove yourself. I'm sure you've been  
waiting for some time... haven't you, Razeid? Do you dream about it  
at night? Does it stop you from sleeping? Does it push you further in  
the day?" The young Legionnare wasn't all too sure exactly she was  
talking about, but either scenario he was picturing in his mind seemed  
to work. He nodded.  
  
"We've been observing you for some time now, Razeid." Lien-Da  
continued, lifting her hand up as she brushed a finger across the side  
of his face. "You always were a fine addition to our group... and you  
would never go against us, would you? Wouldn't allow yourself to be  
consumed with the guardian's lies of a technology-free world?"  
  
"Never, my-"  
  
"Because, Razeid, I don't like it when that happens." Her voice losing  
some of the erotic touch it dangled with, Lien's hand tightened around  
the fabric by his neck. He bit is lip to stop from making a gagging  
sound. Her face moved closer to his, and he could feel her inviting  
breath dance against his skin. She was, as his mates would easily  
agree, a temptress. An evil one, perchance. But her appeal drove  
them wild. Insane. "I don't like it when people screw me over. And  
do you know what happens when they do?" Weakly, he nodded. "And  
you wouldn't do that, would you?"  
  
"Never..."  
  
*  
  
"You've got exactly five seconds to tell me you're joking before I kill  
you."  
  
"Guardian." Remington snapped. "I'm sorry. This is beyond my control.  
Now, you can take out your anger at my expense, or you can join my  
men in locating your girlfriend. The choice is all yours." Knuckles  
seethed at the constable, his fists clenched in standard fashion. "Now  
please sit down, and we'll discuss this like men."  
  
Snorting, Knuckles finally moved back to his chair, his arms crossed  
over his chest as if to hold him back. "How the hell did this happen,  
Remington? Don't your men do ANYTHING around here, or is it entirely  
up to me now?"  
  
"If it was entirely up to you..." Remington shook his head, stopping  
himself from saying anything further. Putting up with Locke's  
continually angry son was one of the worst parts of his job, but one  
he had little choice about. "Listen. Guardian. They attacked suddenly,  
and you know how they operate. By the time we even heard about it  
the damage was done, and because they've been so quiet lately, we  
haven't been able to contact them."  
  
"That's easy - you've got spies, haven't you?"  
  
"Had..." Remington's voice trailed off. "Kragok wasn't fooled for too  
long. They're long gone."  
  
"DAMN it!" Knuckles cried, punching the wall next to him. The  
constable braced himself as the room shuddered. "Isn't there ANYONE  
else? Don't you know someone who has ANY idea where she is?"  
  
"No... I'm sorry." Remington bowed his head. "My men are searching  
everywhere. We're going to find it right away. But I'm thinking YOU  
might have some idea. Your power is greater than the Echnida  
Security Team. Can't you tap into it and get some sort of lead?"  
  
"I-" Knuckles paused for a minute, then shook his head. "Nothing's  
coming through. I don't have that power!"  
  
"Yes, you must."  
  
"No, I DON'T!" The red echnida argued, growling. "If I did, I'd already  
be there by now. Maybe they're back in some other zone, maybe  
they're parked outside this building and you're too blind to notice it,  
which would sure as hell be no surprise to me!"  
  
"Listen to yourself. Your friend is out there, captured, and you would  
rather spend the time bickering - which is no surprise to me either,  
but that's beside the point. Round up your boys. You know the Legion  
as well or better than I do. Besides, they're sure to attack sooner or  
later. And when they do, we'll get them and bring our citizens back,  
Julie-Su included. If you insist on fighting, hey, that's the price she  
has to pay, I guess."  
  
Silence.  
  
"She'll be found. Don't worry about that."  
  
"I never do, Guardian."  
  
*  
  
Komi-Ko sighed and leafed through a paperback in her bed. Her  
beloved significant other seemed to be pulling an all-nighter again, as  
he had yet to return to their shared apartment. Which wasn't her  
first choice of arrangements, but considering how he had already  
broken off their first engagement - commitment-phobe that he was -  
it was the best thing she could expect from him. Besides, how could  
they possibly be married if he was never home?  
  
In the end, it mattered not - she was content to be with him, legal  
or not, and a casual relationship probably fit their needs better.  
Neither wanted children, for one thing. Now, or perhaps ever. Both  
were busy. Groaning, she closed her eyes against the pillow, her long  
dreadlocks strewn over the sheets. They kept her company, as he  
was around less and less. 'Never be involved with a man in uniform,'  
her mother had warned her. Ah, mother... Komi shook her head,  
smiling to herself. If you only knew what else Remington was, you'd  
be killing yourself.  
  
The door creaked open, and footsteps crossed the hall. Finally! The  
echnida woman sat up, covering herself slightly with the sheets. The  
bedroom door opened, and a figure walked in.  
  
"Remington?"  
  
"Yeah." Her brow narrowed. That wasn't the constable. Her hand  
darted under his pillow beside her, searching frantically for the  
revolver he always insisted on sleeping with - 'just in case'. Well, the  
case was now, but where was the pistol?  
  
A hand grasped and twisted her wrist sharply, sending a searing pain  
throughout her entire body. "LET GO OF ME!" She screamed, her other  
arm thrusting forward out of reflex and desperation. It connected to  
something, but it was a battle that was over as soon as it began. A  
sharp blow to the head was the last thing she recalled, as the figure  
lifted her over its form and silently left the room.  



End file.
